As an extension of an earlier investigation (J. Med. Chem. 1984, 27, 1431), we prepared a series of 3-substituted 5-[(hydroxyimino)methyl]-1,2,4-oxadiazoles and the corresponding 5-thiocarbohydroximic acid 2-(N,N-dialkylamino)ethyl S-esters. The compounds were evaluated in vitro as reactivators of phosphonylated electric eel and human erythrocyte (RBC) acetylcholinesterases (AChE). The compounds were characterized with respect to (hydroxyimino)methyl acid dissociation constant, nucleophilicity, octanol/buffer partition coefficient, reversible AChE inhibition, and kinetics of reactivating ethyl methylphosphonylated AChE. One compound was also tested for effectiveness in preventing AChE phosphonylation. All of the tested compounds significantly reactivate ethyl methylphosphonylated AChE: the 3-n-octyl- and 3-(1-naphthyl)-substituted aldoximes are as reactive (within a factor of 5-10) toward the inhibited enzymes as the benchmark pyridinium reactivators, 2-PAM and HI-6. All of the substituted thiocarbohydroximic acid S-esters are powerful reversible inhibitors of AChE's: the 3-n-octyl- and 3-(1-naphthyl)-substituted thiocarbohydroximates inhibit eel AChE to 50% initial activity at concentrations less than 5 microM. When added to an eel AChE solution at concentrations between 5 and 50 microM, the 3-phenyl-substituted thiocarbohydroximate effectively antagonizes AChE inhibition by ethyl p-nitrophenyl methylphosphonate (EPMP), suggesting the potential utility of this compound for preventing anti-AChE-agent poisoning.
In the search for improved lipophilic centrally active acetylcholinesterase (AChE) antidotes, a series of alpha-keto thiohydroximates were prepared and evaluated for their ability to reactivate AChEs inhibited by ethyl p-nitrophenyl methylphosphonate (EPMP) and soman (GD). The compounds conformed to the general structure 4-RC6H5C-(O)C(NOH)S(CH2)nN+R'R''.X- where R = H, CH3, F, Br, Cl, OCH3, CN;R' = CH3, C2H5, i-C3H7; R'' = H, CH3; X = Cl, I; and n = 2, 3. In this series, varying R substituents on the aryl ring produced compounds with oxime pKa values from 6.8 to 8.0, optimum for an AChE reactivator. Increasing lipophilicity of the amine segment correlated with reactivator potency, as did electron-withdrawing groups on the aryl moiety, presumably due to increased binding to hydrophobic sites surrounding the AChE active site. The in vitro reactivation potency of the alpha-keto thiohydroximates approaches and even surpasses that of 2-PAM and toxogonin for GD-inhibited AChE. These initial findings point to additional structure-activity relationships to assist in the design of improved antidotal compounds.
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